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1 – 10 of over 1000Tiantian Liu, Keith Walley, Geoff Pugh and Paul Adkins
The purpose of this study is to generate insight into the effects of entrepreneurship education in China by conducting a preliminary scoping study of the enterprising tendency of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to generate insight into the effects of entrepreneurship education in China by conducting a preliminary scoping study of the enterprising tendency of university students studying business.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used a self-administered questionnaire based on the General Measure of Enterprising Tendency v2 (GET2) test to measure the enterprising tendency of a group of Chinese university students. Decision trees, using the Chi-square automatic interaction detector (CHAID) approach, and multiple regression analyses were used to investigate the enterprising tendency of respondents.
Findings
The findings from this study indicate that the students have an overall medium level of enterprising tendency and strengths in some enterprising characteristics. The findings reveal that gender, family business, hometown and entrepreneurship education are significantly related to enterprising tendency but that age, household income, parents’ education and occupation are not.
Research limitations/implications
Although the study is based on a relatively small sample taken from just one university in Beijing, the findings suggest that the enterprising tendency of students can be encouraged by entrepreneurship education. Combined with evidence that entrepreneurship education is at a relatively early stage of development in China, this finding suggests considerable scope to increase student’s enterprising tendency by extending, creating a more favourable environment for and improving the methods used to deliver entrepreneurship education. Enterprising tendency can be argued to naturally result in entrepreneurial intention; however, this extension is beyond the scope of this study, which is restricted to the analysis of enterprising tendency.
Originality/value
This study makes an original contribution to knowledge as it is one of the first studies to explore enterprising tendency among university students in China. It has value for government, policymakers and university program designers in that it provides direction for entrepreneurship education in China.
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Naveed Yasin and Zeinab Khansari
This study evaluates the effectiveness of an enterprise education (social innovation and enterprise) learning programme on the enterprising characteristics among interdisciplinary…
Abstract
Purpose
This study evaluates the effectiveness of an enterprise education (social innovation and enterprise) learning programme on the enterprising characteristics among interdisciplinary undergraduate enterprise education students from a general (without considering gender) and gender-specific perspective at a higher education institution in the United Arab Emirates.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a convenience sampling approach, pre- and post-surveys were distributed among 180 undergraduate students from January to April 2019. An independent-samples t-test was utilised to evaluate the impact of enterprise education on students' learning for three sample classifications, which were (1) general or gender-neutral (no gender consideration), (2) male and (3) female.
Findings
This study found significant improvements in the enterprising characteristics of students as a result of undertaking the learning programme in enterprise education. There was a greater improvement among female students in comparison to male students. However, contrasts in enterprising enhancement trends between female and male students were recognised. While the greatest improvement for male students were identified in their risk-taking characteristics, for female students, the risk-taking characteristic evidenced the least influence. The differences between the enterprising levels in risk-taking, and locus of control, between male and female students, were prominent post completion of the learning programme.
Research limitations/implications
Considering that a quantitative method of inquiry was adopted to address the dearth of research evaluating the effectiveness of our learning programmes in enterprise education (i.e. social innovation) on students' psychological traits through a gendered lens, qualitative insights could enrich the depth of the research findings. As this study was conducted on a limited number of students at a single university, the results do not claim generalisation to other contexts.
Practical implications
The outcomes of this research deliver valuable insights about the divergent influences of enterprise learning programmes on male and female students. The implications of the study suggest that policymakers and stakeholders should consider gender diversities when designing an effective and equitable entrepreneurship and enterprise learning programme that fosters and stimulates students' enterprising mindset and confidence for both male and female students. The implications are for academics, educational instructors and policymakers.
Originality/value
This study presents a literature review on the impact of entrepreneurship education by focusing on the key enterprising psychological characteristics and educational systems over the last two decades, and illustrates that most studies in the field of entrepreneurship are based on either general (gender-neutral) or gender-specified investigations. This work provides a comparison between these two perspectives in a relatively underexplored region of the UAE and demonstrates that relying solely on gender-neutral analyses hinders the opportunity to enhance and effectively harness females' entrepreneurial potential.
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William Keling, Ching Seng Yap and Poh Ling Ho
This study aims to examine entrepreneurial performance differences between indigenous Dayak women entrepreneurs of their high versus low enterprising tendency in Sarawak, Malaysia.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine entrepreneurial performance differences between indigenous Dayak women entrepreneurs of their high versus low enterprising tendency in Sarawak, Malaysia.
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative approach was used for data collection and analysis. The population of this study was the indigenous women entrepreneurs in Sarawak, Malaysia. Primary data were collected from 129 indigenous women entrepreneurs using convenience sampling. The survey instrument for measuring enterprising tendency and entrepreneurial performance was adopted from the relevant literature. Data were analyzed using independent t-tests in Statistical Packages for Social Science.
Findings
This study found that indigenous women entrepreneurs with higher enterprising tendencies performed better than those with lower enterprising tendencies. A significant difference was found between entrepreneurs with a higher enterprising tendency and those with a lower enterprising tendency in three of the five entrepreneurial attributes: need for achievement, creative tendency and calculated risk-taking. Nevertheless, no significant difference was observed in need for autonomy and internal locus of control between the two groups of indigenous women entrepreneurs.
Originality/value
Very few studies are available in the Malaysian context explicitly concerning women entrepreneurs in general and indigenous Dayak women in specific. Therefore, this study provides novel insights into the relationship between enterprising tendency and entrepreneurial performance among indigenous Dayak women entrepreneurs in Malaysia.
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Stanley Cromie and Ian Callaghan
Enterprise and the enterprise culture are regularly referred to in everyday conversation but the term enterprise has a variety of meanings. In its broadest sense enterprise refers…
Abstract
Enterprise and the enterprise culture are regularly referred to in everyday conversation but the term enterprise has a variety of meanings. In its broadest sense enterprise refers to a set of attributes, skills and behaviours which may be demonstrated by an individual. In its narrowest sense it is used synonymously with small business founding and management. In general, enterprising people take bold steps in setting up and managing projects and they require certain knowledge, skills and personal qualities if they are to be considered competent in this context.
Virginia Barba-Sánchez, Yolanda Salinero, Pedro Jiménez Estévez and Pablo Ruiz-Palomino
The high and persistent unemployment rates of people with intellectual disabilities (PwID) reveal the wide gap that still remains to be bridged. Entrepreneurship combinedly with a…
Abstract
Purpose
The high and persistent unemployment rates of people with intellectual disabilities (PwID) reveal the wide gap that still remains to be bridged. Entrepreneurship combinedly with a high enterprising tendency could improve PwID's life satisfaction.
Design/methodology/approach
A mixed-method approach was used, based on questionnaires and structured face-to-face interviews on 37 PwID who had recently become entrepreneurs. Data were firstly quantitatively analyzed using partial least squares-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), and qualitative data were used to enable robust findings.
Findings
The entrepreneurial tendency of PwID who had recently become entrepreneurs was found to be a positive to their life quality (LQ), job satisfaction and life satisfaction.
Research limitations/implications
This study revealed that entrepreneurship among PwID who had high enterprising tendency enhances their LQ, job satisfaction and life satisfaction. However, further research could evaluate whether becoming an entrepreneur is in itself enough to change PwID's life to better, such that a comparison could be done between PwID who become entrepreneurs and PwID who have a salaried job.
Practical implications
New aspects in the design of public social policies to improve PwID's life satisfaction are suggested. These include the facilitation of both entrepreneurship and enterprising tendency for PwID to enhance their life satisfaction.
Originality/value
There are very few occasions in which PwID set up businesses. This is one of the first studies to analyze the benefit of entrepreneurship and enterprising tendency on the LQ, the satisfaction at work and the life satisfaction of PwID.
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The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the national education standard (curriculum, NC) supports the development of enterprising behaviour and the constructivist…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the national education standard (curriculum, NC) supports the development of enterprising behaviour and the constructivist approach to learning at the general education level?
Design/methodology/approach
New methodology was designed based on the assessment of the evidence and frequency of the incidence of the indicators supporting enterprising behaviour in the text of the NC. A content analysis method is used to systematically code and categorize the target indicators from the text of the NC. According to the frequency of indicators that support enterprising behaviour the extent of support is assessed in different parts of the NC.
Findings
The findings of this study show that, while the general part of the NC fully reflects the development of attitudes and skills related to enterprising behaviour, in the competences and learning outcomes of the other parts of the NC, some indicators of enterprising behaviour have only moderate support. This shows that entrepreneurial attitudes are not fully recognized as an educational aim in general education, and for the purposes of moving from a behaviourist to a constructivist educational approach, rethinking and reformulating the learning outcomes in the NC is necessary.
Research limitations/implications
The critical aspects are: first, NC formats may differ between countries, and hence, the suggested analysis may suffer from limited replicability; second, the most critical aspect is that the present work analyses only the learning outcomes of the written NC, which is the basis for real action in the classroom.
Practical implications
The contribution of the current study may be summed up in three main issues: first, methodology for evaluating the extent to which the NC supports the development of enterprising behaviour; second, the need to rethink and reformulate the learning outcomes in the NC (e.g. for natural sciences); and third, evidence of the conflict between the expectations of society and the aims of education. The research results are providing objective feedback to educational experts, policymakers and practitioners to help schools innovate and support the education of enterprising people in general education.
Social implications
The research is an initiative supported by society and directed to support the learning of entrepreneurial behaviour of pupils at the schools of general education and use of constructivist learning approach.
Originality/value
The current study is contributing to the methodology of analysing the written national curricula at the general education level for identification the evidence and frequency of the indicators of enterprising behaviour in different parts of curriculum. The methodology elaborated and the results of this study may be considered applicable for the analysis of NC in other countries. In the future, the NC in connection with real teaching practice should be studied, focusing on finding new solutions to support the education of enterprising people in schools.
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Mohd Zahari Ismail and Syed Zamberi Ahmad
The paper aims to empirically investigate the effectiveness of the entrepreneurship curriculum delivered in Malaysian polytechnics.
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to empirically investigate the effectiveness of the entrepreneurship curriculum delivered in Malaysian polytechnics.
Design/methodology/approach
The data were collected through survey questionnaires, in‐depth interviews, document reviews and focus group discussions. The respondents were drawn from Malaysian polytechnics – training director, centre managers, entrepreneurship instructors in the centre, and polytechnic students who were purposively selected.
Findings
The study identifies that the entrepreneurship curriculum in polytechnics is not effective. Students are not imbued with entrepreneurial knowledge, skills and attributes during their study. Teaching approaches appear to be inappropriate and polytechnic lecturers do not appear to have relevant entrepreneurial skills, knowledge or training.
Research limitations/implications
The sample size was small to be wholly reliable for generalising the findings to a similar problem in other higher learning institutions. However, the insights gained are a crucial basis for further research and give some variables to be investigated on their significance in shaping entrepreneurship education, especially in a developing country like Malaysia.
Practical implications
The findings provide valuable insights for institutional, educators, and policy makers. Stakeholders could use this study to revisit the existing education system and to improve the teaching methodologies in the area of entrepreneurship education in the higher learning institutions.
Originality/value
This is one of the first comprehensive studies to explore how entrepreneurship education is delivered within Malaysian polytechnics.
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The purpose of this paper is to focus on a course in entrepreneurship education for students studying for a Masters in Educational Sciences at a Finnish university. The course was…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to focus on a course in entrepreneurship education for students studying for a Masters in Educational Sciences at a Finnish university. The course was structured around the principles of constructive alignment and aimed to move beyond reflection on entrepreneurship towards action
Design/methodology/approach
The course was delivered in alignment with intended learning outcomes, teaching and learning activities, and assessment. Along with lectures, group work and peer-review activities, students prepared a career development plan as the course progressed, undertook a homework assignment, wrote a reflective journal, and sat the GET2 test twice.
Findings
Quantitative and qualitative analysis suggests that students developed more enterprising attitudes as result of participating in the course. This paper makes an argument in favour of entrepreneurship as a subject for all, a transformative experience capable of shaping the mindset in all who participate.
Originality/value
This paper shows how a course on entrepreneurial education based on a “through” approach can be taught at a tertiary level in places other than economics faculties or business schools. Most tertiary courses rely on “about” and “for” approaches to entrepreneurial education, are teacher-centred, and follow a behaviouristic or cognitive learning paradigm of knowledge transmission, as opposed to the student-centred constructivist approach deployed and described here.
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Reviews and describes the results of some psychological tests whichhave been used with entrepreneurs. The tests have been mainly employedeither to explore the nature of the…
Abstract
Reviews and describes the results of some psychological tests which have been used with entrepreneurs. The tests have been mainly employed either to explore the nature of the entrepreneur or to assess so‐called significant entrepreneurial characteristics. Key problems in the psychological testing of entrepreneurs relate to varying definitions of the entrepreneur, numerous entrepreneurial characteristics, uncertainty about the significance of entrepreneurial characteristics, and lack of rigour in test development. The results of well validated tests highlight many personality characteristics which could be correlated with characteristics of small firms and business owner‐managers. However, there have been specific measures of entrepreneurial characteristics developed in a search for a sensitive discriminating measure. Unfortunately, many of these tests have been poorly validated and this fails to supply useful information about the nature of entrepreneurs. Gives examples to illustrate some problems in psychological testing and discusses the importance of new approaches.
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Presents a case study and a model for course design in enterpriseeducation and training. The model features three main stages (context orenvironment appraisal, commitment to…
Abstract
Presents a case study and a model for course design in enterprise education and training. The model features three main stages (context or environment appraisal, commitment to purpose, producing a blueprint) each of which is an umbrella for other considerations plus a fourth (programme development themes) which proved to be irresistible to the course designers. Presents the model as a rationalization of a course committee process. The outcome was a course design which is modular and flexible, designed to accommodate multiple perspectives, open to changing client needs, anticipating development themes, and which met with immediate acceptance.